Falling in love

I think I'm falling in love with Party Poker and I just can't help myself.I played another 1.5hours there last night at the $50nl 6 max tables and made $50.I did write "made an easy $50" but I don't want to tempt fate too much.

The players at $50 nl are so ego/emotions driven its unreal.They lose a big pot and the plot follows soon after.There seem to be at least one or two like that at most of my recent tables and I love it.Every raise I make seems to translate as an insult to the villans manhood ( pretty sure its only men that play this way most of the time) and result in all out war or me getting called down at least.

After having a great November-Dec 24th last year when I made my money by seeking out the highest pot average/flop seen tables and playing with the maniacs/drunks/Good Loose Aggressive type players I lost my poker bottle after a nasty piece of variance/play around Xmas.

Since then I've dabbled at those tables but more often than not I've sat down at any table available and have been learning how to play depending on the style of that table.All good experience though nothing close to as lucrative or as stressful as playing with the crazies.Not sure I'm ready for the craziest of tables yet but I'm getting there!

I started playing last night in a slightly pissed off mood after deciding to step up to an $11 sng at Party but stupidly signing up for a fixed limit one.( not the first time I've done that).I was thinking it was nl heaven with a load of min raises until I sussed what a donkey I'd been.Thankfully it was a turbo and I managed to avoid the sleepy nauseous feeling I usually get playing fixed limit.I did try and play well at first but I'd brought my Z game to the table and wasn't too upset to finally go out 6th.

All in all a fine weekend at the tables.Maybe the lesson is that if you are feeling a bit jaded and burned out after endless play day after day ,week after week then don't just write about taking a break.Do it!

Makes the game seem more fun and less of a grind after returning.Afterall whats the point in having a hobby if its just seems like more work.Scurvydog wrote about not really enjoying even a winning night as he just sees it as more padding for his bankroll against downswings and I'd kind of reached that point a little myself.I've still got a goal in my head of reaching $5 k and moving up and Iggys recent post urging people to occasionally take a shot is rattling round my head.I just feel even if I did take a shot and actually held my own at higher levels than $100-$200 nl I can't be sure I'd want to come home from work and play for those kind of stakes.

Do you just keep grinding away until you find a level you can't beat and lose your roll trying? I still want to try.If I do and fail then I'll be happy to keep a $2-£2.5k roll online for the levels I'm at and cashout everytime I go over $2.5k.

Ok a couple clips from the paper today and I'm done...

The New York Times reports that sports channel ESPN is planning to bring dominoes to the telly. Sadly, they are not visiting a pub in Whitburn where four pensioners nurse half-pints of heavy before occasionally shouting "chappin". Instead, they want Latino players from New York where the doms are slammed down with much shouting, bragging and bluffing.

Joan Johnston in Wishaw took a holidaying American friend to Edinburgh for a couple of days of culture – we know, hard to believe there is not enough of it in Wishaw – and after visiting the museums her friend asked her which one was it that she saw Dali in. Joan could recall Rembrandts, Renoirs and Raeburns but no Salvador Dali."It was the one near Greyfriars Bobby," said her friend. Definitely no Dali in the National Museum, insisted Joan."Yes, there is," insisted the American. "Dally the sheep."

Reader Donald Macdonald tells us of a T-shirt on sale in Belfast commemorating the ill-fated Titanic which was built there which has emblazoned across it: "It was all right when it left here."